Dispenser



June 30, 1959 HJ'J. slNcLAlR 2,892,569

' DISPENSER v Filed Jan. 12, 195e IN VEN TOR.

fl Sie@ l Para@ 2,892,569' msiiNsE'n Hugh J'. Sinclair, Nwyork, Ny., assi'gmn si ou-.hair to Charles Morgan Hussey, Bronxville, NSY. iiplicafio January i2', 1956, Siii No. 558,@1 :is ciiis. (cig azi-'299) invention relates t6 dispensers and aims particularly to provide niheiipiSiv dispenser Vfor the easy and sanitary dispensing of pills or similar objects one at a time. v

Prior to thepresent invention dispensing devices capable of mechanically dispensing objects such as pills one at a time have either been diicult to operate or expensive to produce. For this reason such dispensers have not gone into general use by individual consumers, but have been limited to commercial or service use.

The present invention provides a simple and inexpensive dispenser capable of dispensing pills or similar objects one at a time. This is accomplished in accordance with theinvention by provision of a housing having a trap chamber with inlet and outlet holes in opposite walls, a guide extending across said chamber, and a mechanism for alternate closure of said holes comprising a ilexible strip movable around said guide between a position in which one of its end portions covers one of said holes and a position in which its other end portion covers the other of said holes.

lIn order to bring the operation of my dispenser under the control of a single operating member which is easy to manipulate I preferably connectan operating member or actuator to said flexible strip to move it around said guide. To further simplify the operation of the device and to limit the amount of manipulation required I preferably provide that the exible strip also be a resilient strip preformed to normally assum a position around said guide in which one of its end portions presses against and covers one of said holes and in which its other end portion leaves the other of said holes uncovered. l find that thei user of my device may dispense one at a time objects such as pills without having to touch them withhis hands, simply by one manipulation of the single operating member for each pill dispensed.

A further advantage of my device is that it may ccmpletely replace the ordinary cap for a pill container. For this purpose I preferably provide that the actuator include a rigid fl'at portion connected to the end portion of the iiexible strip which covers the inlet hole, i.e. the hole communicating with 'the container. When the flexible strip is in the positionV in which it covers said hole then the hole is also provided with a rigid hole cover in the form of the rigid at portion of the actuator. l preferably provide that the actuator be movable into the housing against the spring action of the resilient strip to achieve this position. In applying my dispenser to a container a drug manufacturer may maintain the actuator iii this position byapplying well-known sealing material not only over the junction between the dispenser and the container but'v over actuator as. well. A complete sanitary seal is provided by` also covering the otlet hole of the dispen'serwithsaid sealingm'aterial.`

vA further.advantage of. my dispenser is that when the sealing material, applied. by the manufacturer to my dispenser, is brokenby the consumer, the dispenser, when not in use, is automatically provided with a cover which f, ice

2 makes unnecessary conventional capping o f the container. This is accomplished by the resilient Astrip which has as its normal position that in which it covers the outlet hole of the dispenser. A

A further advantage of my `dispenser is that when it is used with pills which Vare properly dimensioned relative to the dimensions of the dispenser it is difficult to reinsert a pill through the dispenser after it has been ydispensed, thus tending to preserve the hygienic security of the contents of the container.

Other objects and a fuller derstandingof my `invention may be had by referring to the following description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: j A

F ig. l is a section of an elevation View of therp'referred embodimentof my vdispenser` attached to a pill container, said section being on line 1--1 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3:-3 of Fig. l; Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1; v. Fig. 5 is an inverted section onV line 1-1 of Fig; 2 showing the outlet hole covered and the inlet hole uncovered; Y I d v Fig. 6 is an inverted section on line 1-1of Fig. 2 showing the inlet hole covered and the outlet hole uncovered;

Fig. 7 is a bottom view of the preferred of my dispenser. v

Fig. 8 is an isometric view showing the relationship between the actuator and the flexible strip; 4

Fig. 9 is asection view,;c orresponding to that shown in Fig. 2, for another embodiment of my invention; and

. Fig. 10 is an elevation view of my dispenser attached to a container showing the outlet hole and the actuator covered by sealing material. n p

`In Figs. l, 2, 5 and 6 my device A is shown attached to container B containingv pills C.

@armament The dispenser shown in Figs. l- 7 has a housing 1 whichl is preferably in two parts, a bottom part 1i) and a top part 2Q. Cut into the bottom end of bottom part 10 isa slot 11 which engages thetop edge portion 172 of conf tainer `C- Slot 11 and edge portion 12 are engaged force iitting and are held by friction, but other well-` known types of connection may be used. At the top end of bottom part l@ isa flat portion 13 in which a hole 14 is provided. The portion ofbottom part 1'@ adjacentrsa'id ilat portion 13 comprises fa-feeding member 15 having U-shaped cross-section and forminga passage way 16 from the interior of the container C to hole 14. Integral with top surface 19a of said bottom part lil are nipples 17, 17. v

At the top end of top part 20 is a at portion 21 in which a hole 22 is provided. kThe portion of the top part below said flat portion 21 consists of three side portions 23, 24 and 25'. lIn the bottom surfaces 23a and 24a of said sides 23 and 24 are depressions 27, 27 corresponding to nipples 17, 17 i The bottom part 10 'and `the top part 2i! are joined together by well-known adhesive means so that nipples 17, 17 and depressions 27, 27 are in -register andso that holes 14 andV 22 are approximately concentric. As so assembled bottom part 10 and top part 20 form a chamber28 having'a bottom 10a, a top 21a and walls 23h, 24h and 25h with holes 14 and 22 comprising openings i'n said chamber.

The guide preferably consists of a cylindrical rod 3ftl connected across said-chamberZS by its ends 31 and 32 to sides 23y and 24` by fa'.v force fitting lof said ends 31 and` 32 into recesses 23b and 24b in walls lZibatn'd 24h respectively. Said recesses are preferably of a Width slightly less than the diameter of the rod 30 for said force fit and of ardepth' such that Whenthe rod 30' is iti f- 3 place there is clearance between it and both the bottom end 10a and the top end 21a.

The exible strip preferably consists of a thin spring strip 40 having end portions 41 and 42 and an intermediate portion 43. It is preferably preformed into a U-like shape in which the leg of the U terminating in end portion 41 is short and at a divergent angle with the leg of the U terminating in end portion 42 which is long. As inserted in said housing 1 strip 4t) is bent around guide 30 in said chamber 28 so that end portion 41 is movable between guide 30 and bottom 10a to cover hole 14, so that end portion 42 is movable between guide 30 and top 21a to cover hole 22, and so that intermediate portion 43 is in slidable contact with the portion of the surface of guide 30 on the opposite side of said guide from said holes 14 and 22. As so assembled strip 49 is in a U-like shape. Its natural tendency to assume its preformed U-like shape results in a position in which fthe shorter leg terminating in end portion 41 leaves the hole 14 uncovered and in which the longer leg terminating in end portion 42 is parallel to end portion 41 and presses against and covers hole 22.

The actuator preferably consists of a member 5t) having an operator portion 51 and a at portion 52 having an end portion 53. rlhe operator portion S1 is slidably movable in a passage 51a formed by the bottom 10a to the top 21a and walls 23b and 24h. The covering7 portion 52 is movable between walls 23h and 24b, guide 30 and bottom 10a to cover and uncover hole 14 with its end portion S3.

The actuator 50 is preferably connected to the ilexible strip 40 by means of a connector in the form of a rivet 54 passing through end portions 41 and 53. The rivet 54 has a part 5411 which is exposed on the free side of strip 40 and a part 54a which is exposed on the free side of flat portion 52 and which projects into the hole 14 to limit the travel of the strip 40 and actuator S() to maintain them in operative position.

The operation of the dispenser is apparent from Figs. 5 and 6. When operator portion 51 is moved into the chamber 28 it moves the end portion 53 of at portion 52, and with it the end portion 41 of strip 40, over the hole 14 to cover it. This movement of end portion 41 of strip 40 with flat portion S2 relative to guide 30 causes the intermediate portion 43 of strip 40 to be moved in a direction downward and around the guide 30, and the end portion 42 of strip 40 to be moved off of hole 22 to uncover it. In this position the resilient strip 40 is in a U-like shape in which the shorter leg terminates in end portion 42 and the longer leg terminates in end portion 41. This represents a deformation of resilient strip 40 from the position normally assumed as a result of its preformed shape. In the latter position resilient strip 40 is in a U-like shape in which the shorter leg terminates in end portion 41 and the longer leg terminates in end portion 42. When operator portion 51 is released strip 40 automatically resumes this latter position. The release of operator portion S1 thus results in movement of end portion 41 relative to guide 30 and with it end portion 53 of Hat portion 52 to uncover hole 14, movement of the intermediate portionv43 of the strip upward and around guide 30 and movement of end portion 42 to cover hole 22.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 9 the bottom part 10' is fastened to the top part 20 by screws 61 and 62. Portion corresponds to the portion 15 of the bottom part 10 in Figs. l-7. Unlike portion 15 which is integral with at portion 13 of bottom part 10, portion 15' is a separate piece from flat portion 13 and is connected thereto by well-known adhesive means. The bottom part 10 is attached to container B by frictional engagement of the inner surface 63a of cylindrical portion 63 with outer surface 12a' of end portion 12 of container B. The rod 30 is held by friction in a hole 65, of nearly the same diameter as the rod 30', drilled through the sides 23' and 24' of top part 20'. `In all other respects the construction of the embodiment of Fig. 9 is the same as that shown in Figs. 1-8, and the operation is the same also.

In practice when my dispenser A is applied to a container B after it is lled with pills C all openings to the container are sealed as shown in Fig. 10 with one of the well-known sealing materials D now used to seal pill containers. In addition to sealing the junction between the dispenser A and the container B as is usually done when sealing ordinary capped pill containers the sealing material should preferably also cover hole 22, operator portion 51 and passage 51a as shown in Fig. 10. To seal passage 51a operator portion 51 is fully depressed as shown in Figs. 6 and 10, and the seal D keeps it de pressed. This results in a rigid cover for hole 14 in the form of end portion 53 of flat portion S2 which prevents any pills from escaping from the container B to the dispenser A. To avoid puncture of the seal D at hole 22 a flat cover E is preferably inserted between the seal D and top end 21 to cover hole 22.

In order to operate my dispenser A when it has been attached to fa container B and sealed as aforesaid the seal D must rst be removed in the usual way. This releases operator portion 51 which emerges from chamber 28 by the action of spring strip 40, thus uncovering hole 14. The container B is then inverted to the position shown in Fig. 5 so that the dispenser is at the bottom and the open hole 14 permits a pill C to drop into chamber 28. The operator portion 51 is then depressed thus covering hole 14 to prevent further escape of pills from the container, while at the same time hole 22 is opened to permit the first pill to drop out of the dispenser for use. The user may repeat this operation at will until he has dispensed the necessary number of pills. He may then turn it upright and place it in his medicine chest until needed again. The automatic closure of hole 22 by the action of strip 40 when the operator portion 51 is released provides hygienic security for contents.

I have found in constructing a device in accordance Vwith my invention that certain dimensions, locations and shapes for various of the parts are preferable. I have found that it is preferable to place cylindrical rod 30 approximately equidistant from bottom 10a and top 21a of said chamber 2S. When the rod 30 is 1A inch in diameter, I have found it preferable to leave spaces of V32 inch separating it from the bottom 10a and top 21a, respectively. With a rod of this dimension I have found it preferable to use for strip 40 a spring steel strip tWo-thousandths of an inch thick. Also, I find it preferable to preform strip 40 so that when unrestrained, as shown in Fig. 8, the sharpest curvature is near end portion 41 and so that end portions 41 and 42 thereof make an angle with each other of between 30 and 50 degrees. This curvature is desirable to give the spring action above referred to and the angle assures a tight tit for end portion 42 over hole 22. Also I have found it preferable, to give consistent operation of the dispenser, that the pills C be approximately spherical and that they have a diameter at least on the order of percent of the depth of the chamber 28. The feeding member 15 need not necessarily be of a U-shaped cross section, but should be so shaped as to allow pills C easy entry to hole 14, one at a time.

When the pills used has a diameter less than the shortest distance between end 42 of spring stn'p 40 and the end 41 thereof but greater than the shortest distance between the part 54b of rivet 54 and the end 42 of spring strip 40, I have found that it is dicult to reinsert the pill in the container once it has been dispensed. This may be seen from the following operation: To reinsert the pill the operator portion 51 must be depressed to open hole 22. The pill may then be inserted into the chamber 28 through hole 22. When the operator portion yis released to uncover hole 14 it will tend to be prevented from uncovering hole 14 by the obstruction of the pill C to the movement of the head 54a of rivet 54 past said pill.

What I claim is:

1. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a trap chamber having inlet and outlet holes in opposite walls, a guide extending across said chamber between side walls thereof, and mechanism for alternate closure of said holes comprising a flexible strip movable curvedly around said guide between a position in which one of its end portions covers one of said holes and a position in which its other end portion covers the other of said holes.

2. A dispenser as claimed in claim 1 in which the surface of the guide around which the strip is bent is cylindrical in shape.

3. A dispenser as claimed in claim 1 in which the flexible strip is resilient and is preformed to normally assume a position in which one of its end portions covers one of the holes and in which its other end portion leaves the other hole uncovered.

4. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a trap chamber having opposed holes in its top and bottom, a guide extending across said chamber between the side walls thereof, and mechanism for closing said holes alternately, comprising a flexible strip movable curvedly around said guide and an actuator connected to said strip to move it around said guide between a position in which one 'of its end portions covers one of said holes and a position in which its other end portion covers the other of said holes.

5. A dispenser as claimed in claim 4, in which the exible strip and the actuator are connected together by a connector having a portion extending into one of the holes to limit the movement of said strip and said actuator.

6. A dispenser comprising a housing having a trap chamber containing inlet and outlet openings in opposite walls, a guide extending across the chamber, and an alternate closure for said holes comprising a flexible strip movable curvedly around said guide within said chamber and of such length that when one of its end portions covers one of said holes its other end portion leaves the other hole uncovered.

7. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a trap chamber having a rst hole and a second hole in opposite walls thereof, a guide extending across said chamber, and mechanism for closing said holes alternately comprising a resilient strip movable around said guide and preformed to normally assume a position in which one of its end portions covers said Iirst hole and an actuator connected to said strip to move it to the position in which its other end portion covers said second hole.

8. A dispenser as claimed in claim 1 in which the liexible strip is resilient and is preformed so that its end portions tend to diverge from each other and press against the walls of the chamber having the inlet and outlet holes therein.

9. A dispenser as claimed in claim 4 in which the flexible strip and the actuator are connected together at their end portions adjacent the bottom of the chamber by a connector having a portion extending into said chamber to obstruct reinsertion through the hole in the top of said chamber of an object of a diameter greater than the smallest dimension between said connector portion and the other end portion of said flexible strip.

10. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a chamber having opposed holes in its top and bottom, a guide extending across said chamber between the side walls thereof, and mechanism for closing said holes alternately comprising a exible strip movable curvedly around said guide and an actuator connected to one end portion of said strip to move it around said guide between a position in which said actuator and said end portion cover one of said holes and a position in which the other end portion of said strip covers the other of said holes.

l1. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a chamber having a first hole and a second hole in opposite walls thereof, a guide extending across said chamber, and mechanism for closing said holes alternately consisting of a resilient strip movable around said guide and preformed to normally assume a position in which its rst end portion covers said first hole and an actuator having one end connected to the second end portion of said strip and its other end normally protruding from the housing and adapted to move said strip to a position in which its second end portion covers the second hole.

12. A dispenser comprising a housing providing a chamber having an inlet hole and an outlet hole in opposite Walls thereof, a guide extending across said chamber, mechanism for closing said holes alternately consisting of a resilient strip movable around said guide and preformed to normally assume a position in which its rst end portion covers the outlet hole and an actuator having a rst end connected to the second end portion of said strip and a second end normally protruding from the chamber and adapted to move said strip to a position in which its second end portion covers the inlet hole, and a cap covering the outlet hole and the second end of the actuator and adapted to hold the actuator in the position in which its iirst end covers the inlet hole.

13. A dispenser as claimed in claim 7 in which one end of the actuator is connected to the other end portion of the resilient strip.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 913,151 Neher Feb. 23, 1909 1,939,939 Worrell Dec. 19, 1933 2,722,309 Waterman Nov. 1, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 179,515 Austria Sept. 10, 1954 

